1965 Mercer Cobra Roadster Custom Up for Auction

Getting ready to roll under the hammer on August 20 at Monterey is a one-off car that is set to generate a serious amount of interest from exotic car enthusiasts. The vehicle in question is a 1965 Mercer Cobra Roadster that is expected to fetch somewhere between $800,000 - $1,2 million.

This is the work of automobile designer Virgil M. Exner ad his son, and has been given a modern interpretation of a Mercer Raceabout, built by Carrozzeria Sibona-Basano on Cobra chassis. Some eleven different materials, alloys and finishes were employed in both the interior and exterior to demonstrate the diversity of copper and brass.

“Our overall aim was to create an interesting and stimulating design rather than one which simply follows the ‘formula’ of a flat, low snout with a horizontal air scoop and a squared-off bobtailed rear,” Exner reportedly noted according to RM Auctions.

For practical purposes, brass and copper elements were covered with an acrylic coating to prevent discoloration and exterior moldings made of silicon bronze. The taillights are recessed in brass tunnels integrated with the rear-wheel mudguards.

Interior trim, seat backs, door panels and dashboard gauges are executed in copper while a high-strength chromium-copper alloy is used in the steering-wheel spokes. The 16-inch wire wheels have multi-piece brass covers.

Finished in pearl white with black leather interior trim and a full-width curved Plexiglas windscreen, the Mercer-Cobra was toured throughout the world at shows and technical gatherings to promote copper and brass use and adaptability, making appearances on six continents.